While not as widely heralded as the Apollo 11 moon landing, humanity took a giant step this week. In what direction remains to be seen. Last year, Elon Musk’s company Nerualink received permission to conduct human trials with its plan to implant a computer chip in a human brain.
The surgery took place in January, and according to CNN, on Monday, Musk announced that the patient had apparently made a full recovery. Not only that, but the patient is able to move a computer cursor simply by thinking. Musk added:
We’re trying to get as many button presses as possible from thinking, so that’s what we’re currently working on is — can we get left mouse, right mouse, mouse down, mouse up, which is kind of needed if you want to click and drag something, you need mouse down and to hold on mouse down.
There were not many details offered during the announcement on Spaces, but the possibilities connected with this technology as it continues to advance could be incredible. Such a chip could be a boon to people with ALS or MS or who have suffered a debilitating stroke or live with a disability. Musk asked what would have happened had someone like Stephen Hawking been liberated from his disease.
Musk’s announcement made headlines because, well, he is Elon Musk and has a number of accomplishments under his belt. But CNN added that other companies are working on similar technology that have outpaced Neuralink. So the fusion of man and machine will be here sooner than we expect. Of course, it will be a while before this technology is available to the public since it is still in the trial stage and will need to undergo the regulatory process.
While the possibilities may be endless, there are pitfalls as well. If one’s chip is connected to the web, which it will be at times and in future incarnations may be constantly, what happens when the networks are compromised?
The world experienced a hiccup Thursday morning when telecom carriers went down around the nation. If someone’s mind is tied to the web, how would an event like that affect their functionality? It may sound far-fetched, but think about the panic someone feels when they suddenly cannot find their phone. Imagine that same panic setting in when it comes to one’s brain.
Further, if a neural link can transmit data or commands, it can also receive them. Technology is moving at a frightening rate, and what one sees, hears, or learns is at the discretion of those who control the information. Witness the boondoggle surrounding Google’s Gemini AI and the images it has created. What did we expect from Google?
The head of Google’s Gemini AI everyone.
And you wonder why it discriminates against white people. 🤔 pic.twitter.com/wyhSmCaowG
— Leftism (@LeftismForU) February 22, 2024
As the old programming saying goes, “Garbage in, garbage out.” The same can be said for propaganda and dogma. Control the data, control the world. There may come a time when the knowledge and history currently recorded in books and videos will be considered laughably obsolete. The next step will be to consider it potentially harmful. The next step may be “Fahrenheit 451.”